Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine Is Awarded for Discoveries in Neuroscience
New York Times · LC · trust 49/100
Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel were recognized for their work on light-gated ion channels and optogenetics, a technique that uses tiny lights to activate neurons in the brain.
Listen · 4:32 min Share full article 0 Thomas Perlmann, the secretary general of the Nobel Committee, speaking at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, on Monday. Credit... Jonathan Nackstrand/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images By Leo Sands
The three scientists researched light-gated ion channels, a type of proteins, to establish the field of optogenetics , a pioneering technique that uses tiny lights to activate discrete groups of neurons in the brain, said Abdel El Manira, a member of the Nobel Committee that awarded the prize .
The discovery has illuminated how specific circuits function in the brain and provides clues for the treatment of conditions such as blindness, depression, addiction and dementia.
Dr. Karl Deisseroth is a professor of bioengineering and psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University. He and a team developed tiny optical fibers that activated neurons in the brain and elicited specific behaviors for the first time, Professor El Manira said.
Dr. Peter Hegemann is a professor of experimental biophysics at Humboldt University in Berlin. He discovered a protein that converts light into an electrical signal, Professor El Manira said.
Dr. Georg Nagel is a professor of plant physiology at the University of Wurzburg in Germany. Alongside Dr. Hegemann, he discovered that the proteins contained a light-gated ion channel, which generates an electrical signal when exposed to light. Professor El Manira described it as “the switch” that allows neuroscientists to activate the protein.
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